militarywikiaorg-20200222-history
BRP Cebu
|module= |Ship name=''PCE-881'' |Ship builder=Albina Engine and Machine Works, Portland, Oregon |Ship laid down=21 August 1943 |Ship launched=10 November 1943 |Ship commissioned=31 July 1944 |Ship fate=transferred to the Philippine Navy, July 1948 }} |module2= |Ship name=''Cebu'' |Ship namesake=Cebu |Ship acquired=2 July 1948 |Ship commissioned=2 July 1948 |module= }} |module3= (in U.S. Navy service) }} |module4= (in Philippine Navy service) |Ship displacement=914 Tons (Full Load) |Ship length= |Ship beam= |Ship draft= |Ship power= |Ship propulsion=*Main: 2 × GM 12-278A diesel engines *Auxiliary: 2 × GM 6-71 diesel engines with 100KW gen and 1 × GM 3-268A diesel engine with 60KW gen |Ship speed= (maximum), |Ship range= at |Ship complement=85 |Ship sensors=Raytheon AN/SPS-64(V)11 Surface Search / Navigation Radar''GlobalSecurity.org PS Miguel Malvar Class |Ship armament=*1 × Mk.26 3"/50 caliber dual purpose gun *3 × single Bofors 40 mm gun *4 × Oerlikon 20 mm cannon *4 × M2 .50 cal (12.7 mm) machine guns }} }} BRP Cebu (PS-28) is a of the Philippine Navy. She was originally built as USS ''PCE-881, a for the United States Navy during World War II and patrolled the Alaskan coast during that war. She was decommissioned from the U.S. Navy and transferred to the Philippine Navy in July 1948 and renamed RPS ''Cebu (E-28) after the Philippine province of the same name. The ship is . Along with other World War II-era ships of the Philippine Navy, Cebu is considered as one of the oldest active fighting ships in the world today.Manokski's Armed Forces of the Philippines Order of Battle. Philippine Navy. History Commissioned in the US Navy as USS ''PCE-881 in 1944, and patrolled the coast of Alaska during World War II. The ship was decommissioned after World War II. She was then transferred and commissioned into the Philippine Naval Patrol and was renamed RPS Cebu (E-28) in July 1948. She was carried on to the Philippine Navy in 1950, and between 1965-1966 she was renamed as RPS Cebu (PS-28) using a new classification system. Again in June 1980 she was renamed BRP Cebu (PS-28) using a new localized prefix.Philippine Navy Information Manual 1995 - Adoption of Pilipino Translation of "Bapor ng Republika ng Pilipinas" In 1992 the ''Iloilo underwent major overhaul, weapons and radar systems refit, and upgrade of communications gear.Saunders, Stephen: Jane's Fighting Ships 107th Edition 2004-2005. Jane's Information Group Ltd, 2004. Cebu won the Philippine Navy "Ship of the Year" award for the year 2009. She is currently assigned with the Patrol Force of the Philippine Fleet,Philippine Fleet Official Website. Commissioned ships and crafts . under the jurisdiction of Naval Forces Western Mindanao. Notable Operations After the ship's construction and the crew's training was completed in Portland Oregon, it patrolled the coast of Alaska from the Aleutian Islands to the Bering Strait during World War II. The ship’s commanding officer was Lieutenant Commander W.W. Adams. Adams, W.W. "USS PCE 881 Thanksgiving Menu". November 1944. Between 19 and 22 March 1958, then RPS ''Cebu participated in the first bilateral exercise between the Philippine and US Navies dubbed Exercise "Bulwark One". It took part on the 3rd phase of the exercise off the waters of Corregidor and Caballo Islands.De Leon, Bernardo Jr. "Coast Defense Exercise Ends", Manila Times. 21 March 1958. On 1968, during the height of the so-called 'Operation Merdeka', against the combined might of the Royal Navy and Royal Malaysian Navy ships, BRP Cebu stood her 'ground' to protect the maritime border of the Philippines and confronted the British-Malaysian warships raring to do a battle with her after learning that the Philippines is preparing to invade Sabah. The stand-off between the Philippine Navy and British-Malaysian Navy lasted for 10 tense hours giving the Philippine Navy patrol craft escort/corvette a victory for not yielding even an inch of the Philippine territory.DEFENDERS OF THE PHILIPPINE SOVEREIGNTY, http://defenders-philippine-sovereignty.blogspot.com/2012/11/the-1968-operation-merdeka-patrol.html As of 23 June 2008, she and her onboard medical team participated in the search and rescue of the [[MV Princess of the Stars|MV Princess of the Stars]] of Sulpicio Lines, which capsized off the coast of San Fernando, Romblon at the height of Typhoon Fengshen on 22 June 2008.Newsflash.org. Ferry Capsized in Romblon Stormy Sea: 929 Dead, Missing. BRP Cebu and have alternately secured the Southern Sulu Sea where the Baduria Well is located. She also provides security for the West Aquarius Oil Rig. In middle of May 2018, the BRP Cebu participated in the Third Combined Maritime Security Activity with the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) along with the BRP General Mariano Alvarez (PS-38), BRP Anastacio Cacayorin (PS-381), BRP Dioscoro Papa (PG-381) and BRP Filipino Flojo (PG-386). The RAN sent the vessels HMAS Albany (ACPB 86) and HMAS Glenelg (ACPB 96) for the exercise."RP, Australia Up for Another Maritime Security Activity" In the latter part of May 2018, the BRP Cebu held a meeting with the Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) ship, the [[Sri Tiga|KD Sri Tiga]] at the maritime border between Malaysia and the Philippines to exchange intelligence information as part of the Trilateral Maritime Patrol Programme in the Eastern Security Zone (Esszone) of Sabah."M'sian, Filipino Naval Ships to Meet at Maritime Border to Exchange Intelligence" Technical details There are slight difference between the BRP Pangasinan as compared to some of her sister ships in the Philippine Navy, since her previous configuration was as a patrol craft escort (PCE), while the others are configured as rescue patrol craft escort (PCER) and minesweepers (''Admirable'' class) ships. Armaments Originally the ship was armed with one Mk.26 /50 caliber dual purpose gun, three twin Mk.1 Bofors 40 mm guns, four Mk.10 20 mm Oerlikon guns, 1 Hedgehog depth charge projector, four depth charge projectiles (K-guns) and two depth charge tracks.NavSource Online: Patrol Craft Escort Photo Archive. PCE-881. This configuration applies before its overhaul in the early 1990s. During its overhaul and refit in 1992, the Philippine Navy removed her old anti-submarine weapons and systems, and made some changes in the armament set-up. Some sources claim the loss of its three Bofors 40mm cannons during the 1990-1991 overhaul and refit period, but photos http://www.timawa.net/forum/index.php?topic=14874.0 at of 2009 show the Bofors guns still present, although in singles instead of twins. Final armaments fitted to the ship are one Mk.26 3"/50-caliber gun (fore), three single Bofors 40 mm cannons (aft), four Mk.10 Oerlikon 20 mm cannons (2 each on bridge wings), and four M2 Browning 12.7 mm/50 caliber machine guns (2 besides main bridge, 2 aft near the ship's end). This made the ship lighter and ideal for surface patrols, but losing her limited anti-submarine warfare capability. Electronics Also during the refit the ship's SPS-21D surface search radar and RCA SPN-18 navigation radar was replaced by a Raytheon AN/SPS-64(V)11 surface search and navigation radar system. Later modifications included the installation of long range and satellite communications systems, and GPS system standard to all Philippine Navy ships. Machinery The ship is powered by two GM 12-278A diesel engines, with a combined rating of around driving two propellers. The main engines can propel the 914 tons (full load) ship to a maximum speed of around .''DLSU N-ROTC Office. Naming and Code Designation of PN Vessels . Notable Popular Culture * BRP ''Cebu was the ship escorting a fictional Philippine Navy Whidbey Island-class LSD BRP Cagayan de Oro during a mission to reclaim the Mischief Reef from the Chinese in the 1997 novel Dragon Strike - The Millennium War by Humphrey Hawksley and Simon Holberton. In the said novel, the mission failed as Chinese Su-27s sank the Cagayan de Oro, and Chinese forces repulsed the attacks of the Philippine Marines to retake the reef. This resulted to the total withdrawal of the Philippines from the South China Sea war against China.Hawksley, Humphrey; Holberton, Simon (1997). Dragon Strike - The Millennium War References External links * Philippine Defense Forum * Philippine Navy @ Hazegray.org * DLSU ROTC * Opus224's Unofficial Philippine Defense Page * NavSource Online: Patrol Craft Escort Photo Archive Category:PCE-842-class patrol craft Category:Ships built in Portland, Oregon Category:1943 ships Category:PCE-842-class patrol craft of the Philippine Navy Category:Miguel Malvar-class corvettes Category:Active corvettes of the Philippines